Jingle Bell Games

Lessons for K and 1

Thanks to everyone who came to Monday’s Music ConstructED online PD. It was very well attended and we had a great time. Demonstrating this work in a virtual format is sometimes tricky, as the work relies so much on interpersonal connections and split second timing. Despite those challenges, the session was a blast!

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One of the themes of my workshop called “Movement IS Music” is to focus our attention and pedagogical sequence on the body. The way we move IS the thing we’re teaching. It’s not simply a way to teach a broader concept or a symbol to help understanding. Teaching the body is really the central goal of the class. Movement training of this nature is severely lacking in our culture and in our schools, in my opinion. The children come to me with less and less physical coordination over the years, it seems. Developing activities to encourage thoughtful movement is a huge part of my early primary strategy.

I have recently developed a series of games that use simple instruments to encourage the right kind of movement. I happen to have a set of “jingle bells” in my classroom and I thought they were the perfect tool for this activity. I can imagine using any number of instruments for this, including tambourines or shakers. I have some variations on this activity for older students that I will perhaps share in a later post (or maybe share for PAID subscribers) but this first string of games was a big hit for my Kindergarten and 1st Grade classes. The jingle bells gave the students a connection with the holiday season, although I did nothing to reinforce that connection.